Besides the United States and the West Indies, Jones toured in South America, Australia, India, southern Africa,[1] and Europe.

[2] She remained the star of the Famous Troubadours for around two decades while they established their popularity in the principal cities of the United States and Canada,[6][7] Jones retired from performing in 1915.

[10] When she was six years old,[9] her family moved to Providence, Rhode Island,[11] where she began singing at an early age in her father's Pond Street Baptist Church.

[2] In the late 1880s, Jones was accepted at the New England Conservatory of Music[1] in Boston, studying under Flora Batson of the Bergen Star Company.

[9] On October 29, 1885, Jones gave a solo performance in Providence as an opening act to a production of Shakespeares's Richard III staged by John A. Arneaux's theatre troupe.

[1] The New York Echo wrote of her performance at the Music Hall: "If Mme Jones is not the equal of Adelina Patti, she at least can come nearer it than anything the American public has heard.

"[1] On June 8, 1892, Jones' venue options expanded, and she entered a contract with the possibility of a two-year extension, for $150 per week (plus expenses) with Major James B. Pond, who had meaningful affiliations to many authors and musicians[5] and also managed artists such as Mark Twain and Henry Ward Beecher, and her fees began to rise.

[2] She received $2,000 for a week-long appearance at the Pittsburgh Exposition, noted for being the highest fee ever paid to a black artist in the United States.

By 1896, she also had become frustrated with racism limiting her venues in the United States, particularly when the Metropolitan Opera, which considered her for a lead role, rescinded that opportunity because of her race.

During the final third of each show, Jones performed arias and operatic excerpts,[4] although "low" comedy, song and dance were also showcased in what was originally a "free-for-all" variety production with no pretense of a coherent story line.

[6] The Indianapolis Freeman reviewed the "Black Patti Troubadours" with the following: "The rendition which she and the entire company give of this reportorial opera selection is said to be incomparably grand.

Not only is the solo singing of the highest order, but the choruses are rendered with a spirit and musical finish which never fail to excite genuine enthusiasm.

"[20] As the show grew more organized by the early 1900s, she had added scenery and costumes to her opera excerpts, and there were definite plots and musical comedy where she appeared in the storyline.

She led the company with reassurance of a forty-week season that would give her a sustainable income, guaranteed lodging in a well-appointed and stylish Pullman car, and the ability to sing opera and operetta excerpts in the final section of the show.

[5] She was the highest-paid African American performer of her time,[5] remaining the star of the Famous Troubadours for around two decades while they toured each season and established their popularity in the principal cities of the United States and Canada.

[6][7] The company Troubadours made an important statement about the capabilities of black performers[5] to its predominantly white audiences,[2] showing that there were diverse artist genres and styles besides minstrelsy.

[24] As of 2013, the Rhode Island Black Heritage Society was seeking funds to restore a performance dress worn by Jones in the 1890s, after the yellow silk and embroidered gown deteriorated.

[9] She lived off her holdings for a number of years, but was eventually[24] forced to sell most of her property to survive,[1][2] including most of her medals and jewels and three of her four houses.

[2] In her final years, the president of the local NAACP chapter helped pay her taxes and water bill, and provided her family with coal and wood.